


Some Things Are Meant To Be

by wildwolfsongs



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Anxiety Disorder, M/M, Mute!Yuuri, Sign Language, Slow Burn, Social Anxiety, demisexual!Yuuri, musician!yuuri
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-03
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2018-10-27 14:37:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10811004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wildwolfsongs/pseuds/wildwolfsongs
Summary: Katsuki Yuuri is an undiscovered violin prodigy with a dark past. Victor Nikiforov is a legendary Russian figure skater who has lost his passion. Together they have the potential to create a harmonious melody unlike any other, but a single note could be their undoing. Secrets will out. Can their love stand the test?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a rewrite of my story "Fragile As A Butterfly's Wing."
> 
> SONGS
> 
> "O Mio Babbino Caro" covered by Jackie Evancho (The opera song in the beginning)  
> "O Mio Babbino Caro" violin cover by Joshua Bell (Yuuri plays this over the opera song in the beginning)  
> "River Flows In You" violin cover by Daniel Jang (Yuuri plays this in the audition video)
> 
> TRANSLATIONS
> 
> Дерьмо - shit  
> пожилой челвек – old man

_O mio babbino caro_  
_Mi piace, bello bello…_

 

The delicate hum of the opera singer’s voice floated down the hallway of Yu-topia Katsuki, the sound muffled slightly by the old, gravelly speakers the song played through. The guests relaxing in the dining area all smiled blissfully as the tones danced around their heads. 

 

However, it wasn’t the lyrical timbre of the soloist they clung to. Playing above the static of the speakers were the precise, wispy vibrations of a violin. Its melody resonated so beautifully, so perfectly that guests were always left in a tranquil state of mind. This particular evening, a young woman visiting the inn sighed happily as the music washed over her, leaning against her husband’s side as they listened.

 

 

Then the peaceful lull was shattered by the clamoring of little voices.

 

 

“Yuuri! What song is that?”

 

“Isn’t this what Victor skated to last year at the Grand Prix Finals?”

 

“Yuuri, aren’t you ever going to get married?”

 

As soon as the woman heard the song abruptly cease and these particular voices chime in, she launched herself down the hall towards a small bedroom. It was here that she spotted her three children tackle a young, dark-haired man to the floor, his hands protectively clutching a violin as he landed. 

 

“Axel! Lutz! Loop! You know better than to bother Yuuri when he’s practicing!” The three girls froze at the sound of their mother’s voice behind them, turning sheepishly to look at her. The woman gave them a stern look. 

 

“Apologize now, girls.” 

 

“Sorry, Yuuri…” they chorused together. The man, Yuuri, just shook his head in amusement as the girls reluctantly followed their mother back down the hall to where their father was waiting to head out the door. 

 

As the family said their goodbyes and exited through the doorway, the woman’s scolding was soon replaced with the delicate string melody once again. The peace was restored as the inn’s patrons began to settle for the night. 

 

_O Dio! Vorrei morir!_  
_Babbo, pietafa, pietafa…_

 

\---- 

 

“Дерьмо!” 

 

A blond head shot up at the sound of the curse, a single eyebrow lifting above eyes that glittered with annoyance. 

 

“What’s up with you, пожилой челвек? You never curse like that.” 

 

“It’s not working, Yura!” The blond haired boy just stared. 

 

“You’re kidding me, right? You better not be talking about your program. Don’t you dare scrap it, Victor. I’ll take it if you’re so fed up with it.” The silver haired man gouged at the ice below his feet in frustration. 

 

“It’s not the program… not really anyway. It’s the music.” This surprised Yuri, not that he’d ever let that show. 

 

_Victor doesn’t usually have any issues with choosing his music…_

 

“I just can’t get into this song at all! There’s no meaning or story behind it.” Yuri rolled his eyes and stood. 

 

“Well, if you’re not going to keep practicing then get off the ice. It’s my turn.” The blond slid out to the center of the rink, hiding a concerned gaze as he watched his rink mate collapse onto the bench and begin unlacing his skates in tight, frustrated motions. 

 

“Just go home and figure your music out, stupid. Yakov won’t care if _you_ stop early; you’re the famous one after all.”

 

“And _you’re_ the prodigy, Yuri.” Victor retorted icily. The blond glared at him. Yuri didn’t appreciate being called that; it always made him feel like his hard work meant nothing.

 

The older man swiped a hand across his face, trying to calm himself down. “I’m sorry, Yura. I didn’t mean to be harsh, though you _are_ a prodigy.” He mumbled that last bit so Yuri wouldn’t hear. “I think I’ll take your advice though. Maybe a good search through songs on YouTube will spark an epiphany in me or something.” Yuri snorted.

 

“Yeah good luck with that.” The blond spun on his skates and began to warm up on the ice. Victor gazed at his friend for a minute before turning and walking out of the rink, mind racing for an idea to fix his predicament. 

 

\---- 

 

“Yuuri~! Please, please, please let me record one of your songs! It doesn’t even have to be one of your originals, you can play a cover!” Yuuri glared at his friend, Phichit, as the Thai boy continued to plead his case. The Japanese boy’s hands flurried in quick gestures, his words causing Phichit to dramatically cover his heart with one hand, the other resting upon his forehead. 

 

“Yuuri, you wound me! Come on. Your music is so beautiful and everyone would absolutely fall in love with it if you would just let me post it online for you!” Yuuri shook his head firmly and Phichit sighed in resignation. 

 

“Fine, fine,” he responded, throwing his hands up in defeat. “I’ll just have to listen _really_ hard and describe it to people in perfect detail. Oh! Maybe I could sing it for them; then all I’d have to do is remember the melody!” The boy then proceeded to crudely belt out the tones of a random classical piece, Yuuri quickly darting across the room to slam a hand across his best friend’s mouth. Phichit’s giggles puffed from between Yuuri’s fingers as the Thai boy pried the hand from his face. 

 

“Just kidding, Yuuri!” Yuuri stuck his tongue out at him. 

 

“But really though, will you play me something?” Yuuri rolled his eyes, nodding in response to the question as he reached for his carefully polished violin. 

 

The black haired boy inhaled deeply as the instrument came to rest between his shoulder and chin before gently sliding the bow across the strings. A soft, tender melody began to pour out from both the instrument and the man himself as Yuuri’s eyes fell closed, body moving to match the flow of the music. 

 

 

What he didn’t notice was his friend’s phone being secretively pointed at him as he played. 

 

 

The notes continued to swirl around the room in rich, calming swells, washing over Phichit’s ears like the tide on a midnight beach. 

 

As the piece drew to a close, Phichit quickly snatched his phone from sight, saving the video he had taken for “safe-keeping” as the boy called it. Yuuri’s eyes opened and he sighed contentedly as he laid his violin down once more, blushing in response to his friend’s enthusiastic applause. 

 

“You never cease to amaze me, Yuuri! I just wish you’d audition for that symphony you’ve always dreamed of joining. You’d fill their empty position perfectly; I just know it!” Yuuri sighed and shook his head at his friend, mouth tentatively opening as he replied. 

 

“Phichit, we’ve gone through this. It’s just too big of a dream right now. I’m happy being here with my family. There’s other people out there who will be way better than me anyway.” The Thai boy tried his best to make no reaction to his friend suddenly speaking aloud, choosing to instead respond as normal. 

 

“But-” 

 

_‘I’m not auditioning and that’s final.’_

 

Phichit pouted at his friend, hiding his disappointment as the boy switched back to sign language, but quickly changed the subject so the Japanese man wouldn’t get upset with him. His mind, however, was fixated on one thought. 

 

_Just you wait, Yuuri. I’m going to help you achieve your dream and make you finally realize just how good you are._

 

\---- 

 

“Vitya, I need your help with something.” The Russian man had just been about to leave the rink when his coach’s voice stopped him dead in his tracks. Victor had hoped that he could get away with heading home early without the man knowing, but of course the universe just had to work against him even when he was having a rough day. 

 

“Yakov, I was really hoping to head home early and fix the problems with my music…” The coach raised an eyebrow, obviously having been unaware of his student’s issues, but shook his head. 

 

“It’ll only take a few minutes. I’ll even allow you to leave early, though it doesn’t look like you were planning on informing me of this change in your practice schedule?” Victor grinned guiltily, but continued to glance towards the door, hoping to make an escape. Then Yakov spoke again. 

 

“Look, don’t do it for me. This is a favor for Lilia. She needs your help deciding on something.” Victor smirked mischievously at his coach. 

 

“Well, I suppose if it’s for _Lilia_ then I can spare the time to help out.” Yakov just rolled his eyes and turned, a quick hand gesture indicating that Victor should follow him. They entered a small office that was left open to the coaches at the rink. Lilia sat at a desk with a laptop in front of her, glancing up when she saw them enter the room. 

 

“Thank you, Yakov. Victor, I need your help. You’re the only one around here, besides me of course, that understands the beauty and meaning behind music. I have four musicians who sent in recordings of themselves playing to audition for my orchestra. I can’t decide between them; I need your thoughts.” 

 

Victor’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. Lilia ran the most prestigious orchestra in all of Russia, which also happened to be one of the best worldwide. It wasn’t often that she would need to admit that she required assistance, but Victor wasn’t about to let the opportunity go to waste. 

 

“Of course, Lilia. I’d be happy to help! Show me what you’ve got.” 

 

\---- 

 

_Shall we skate! You can stand like a feather on the ice!_  
_Let yourself go with music, spinning around like a dice!_

 

A soft groan rose from beneath a cocoon of blankets before a hand shot out from under them to grasp the phone on the table beside the bed. Phichit’s head rose as he blearily gazed at the number on his phone. 

 

His eyes widened and he leapt from the bed, fumbling to answer the phone before the person on the other line hung up. 

 

“Hello?” 

 

“Hello, my name is Lilia Baranovskaya. Is this a Mr. Phichit Chulanont?” 

 

\---- 

 

“I can see why you were having difficulties, Lilia. They’re all very good. Can’t you just accept them all?” 

 

“No. I only have one vacant spot since one of my violinists is expecting a child and I refuse to break my traditions. I have exactly 97 musicians in my orchestra and I will not go one less or one more under any circumstances.” Victor winced internally at her strict guidelines, but nodded in understanding. 

 

“Well, we still have one more to listen to, right? Show me the last video and then I’ll give you my thoughts.” The woman nodded in response, turning the laptop to face Victor once more with the final submission ready to play. 

 

When Lilia hit the play button, Victor’s breath left his body. On the screen was the most beautiful man he’d ever seen; nothing could possibly make this man more attractive in Victor’s eyes. 

 

 

Then, the man began to play. 

 

 

“Him. He’s the one.” 

 

\---- 

 

“YUURI! YUURI, WAKE UP! YOU GOTTA WAKE UP MAN!” Phichit was pounding incessantly on the Japanese man’s bedroom door, furiously trying to get the man to wake up. Finally, after what seemed like 7 hours (it was only 1 minute), Yuuri opened the door, glaring at the boy. 

 

 _‘Phichit? How did you get in here? And what could you possibly need from me at,’_ he glanced at his watch, _‘1 in the morning…’_ The boy’s signing trailed off as he took in the wide eyes and ecstatic smile on his friend’s face. _‘Phichit, what’s going on?’_

 

“You are never going to believe this. Please don’t hate me, okay? I promise I only did it because I wanted to help.” Yuuri watched him suspiciously. 

 

_‘Why do I have a feeling I don’t want to know… Phichit, what did you-’_

 

Yuuri’s sentence was cut off by the sound of his own phone ringing. Phichit squealed in excitement, reaching over to grab Yuuri’s phone and shove it into his hands. Yuuri had never been so taken aback by his friend’s actions, but he glanced down at the unknown number on the phone anyway. 

 

“Answer it. Don’t question me for once in your life and just answer the freaking phone, Yuuri.”

 

 _‘Alright, alright. Calm down, I’m answering it right now.’_ Yuuri figured the person on the other line must’ve known at least a little about him since they knew to video call him instead of a voice call. 

 

 _Maybe it’s someone I know that I forgot to save the contact information for?_ He slid the talk button on the video call. 

 

 

Yuuri almost dropped the phone in shock. 

 

 

Staring at him through the screen was none other than Lilia Baranovskaya, the maestro for the Russian Symphony Orchestra. The Japanese man could feel his hands start to shake as his anxiety started building. Yuuri tried his best to keep himself calm as he looked to Phichit, his own wide eyed gaze meeting his best friend’s delighted one. 

 

“Mr. Katsuki Yuuri, correct?” Yuuri could do nothing but nod slowly in response. 

 

“Good. Your friend Mr. Chulanont informed me that I would need to contact you through video. I apologize for calling so late, but it’s for a very urgent matter that I’m eager to resolve as soon as possible. I’m pleased to know I’m in contact with the right person. I received your audition video and was impressed with your work.” 

 

_Video? What vid-_

 

Yuuri’s head whipped around to find Phichit smiling at him wickedly. The man raised his hand to give his best friend a thorough scolding for sending in a video of him playing when he had specifically stated he wasn’t going to audition. However, Lilia’s next words stopped him immediately, causing him to stare at the woman in utter disbelief. 

 

“I would like to offer you the position of first violin in the Russian Symphony Orchestra, Mr. Katsuki.”

 

\---- 

 

Yuuri, with the help of Phichit who translated for him, finished his conversation with the Lilia Baranovskaya. She explained that there would be an official offer and acceptance letter sent to him through email within the next few hours and that she expected a response within 2 days, maximum. When Yuuri hung up the phone, his legs gave out on him and he sank to the floor. 

 

“Yuuri…? You alright, buddy?” Yuuri covered his hands with his face. “Oh, Yuuri… I’m sorry, I thought that you would be overjoyed by this! It’s your dream to be in the RSO… I didn’t mean to upset you.” Phichit lowered himself to the floor and rubbed his friend’s back in consolation.

 

However, when Yuuri’s hands dropped from his face, Phichit was met with the happiest gaze he had ever seen in his entire life. 

 

\---- 

 

The following day (really just hours later), Yuuri received the promised email. When he opened it, he just stared for a few minutes, still not really believing this was happening. The email promised him airfare and lodging for up to two people for the entire duration of his time with the orchestra. It also promised private access to state of the art practice studios and other amazing offers that Yuuri couldn’t begin to fathom. 

 

After a long discussion with his family and a much shorter, but no less important, conversation with Phichit, Yuuri had made his decision. 

 

_Dear Ms. Baranovskaya,_

_I would be honored to accept the position as first violin with the Russian Symphony Orchestra. As requested in the letter you sent, I am informing you that I will be needing both sets of airfare and lodging as my friend, Mr. Chulanont, will be accompanying me as my interpreter. I have also attached the personal information you requested to this email as well as the information about my condition. I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity you are giving me to be a part of your prestigious group. I look forward to working with you. Mr. Chulanont and I are able to leave Japan and fly to Russia at any time that works best for you. I look forward to meeting you in person._

_Sincerely,_

_Katsuki Yuuri_

_1 Attachment: Katsuki Yuuri – Selective Mutism Documentation.doc_


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm so sorry for the extended update period! It's been a crazy month what with college finals and jobs and what not. Anyway, here's chapter 2 for you all. I promise I'm going to try and be a bit more consistent and timely with future updates. I hope you enjoy!

In just two days, Yuuri and Phichit were standing at the doors of Yu-topia Katsuki, suitcases in hand ready to depart for Russia. Yuuri chuckled as his mother gripped him around the middle in a tight hug for the 10th time that morning. 

 

“Oh, Yuuri. I’m so excited for you, sweetheart. Go and make all your dreams come true, okay?” Yuuri gave his mother a watery smile, the final goodbyes reminding him of what he was giving up as he pursued his dream. 

 

“I’m going to miss you, お母さん… Promise you’ll come see my first performance?” Hiroko smiled warmly at the soft, hesitant hum of her son’s voice and kissed him on the cheek.

 

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” 

 

After a few last hugs and kisses for both Yuuri and Phichit, the two friends made their way out the door and into a taxi, Phichit calling out excitedly to the driver. 

 

“Airport, please!”

 

 

\---- 

 

 

“What do you mean he’s arriving today? You’ve got to be joking!” Bright blue eyes began to swim with panic as the meaning behind Lilia’s words sunk into Victor’s brain. She had been speaking with Yakov to ensure that their guests would be brought to her swiftly upon their arrival, but Victor couldn’t help overhearing. 

 

“I do not joke, Vitya.” Lilia’s strict tone startled Victor into remembering just who he was speaking to. “My new violinist will be arriving this afternoon before my scheduled training with Yuratchka. I am not to be disturbed until then.”

 

Victor watched the stern woman walk off, feeling nervous jitters well up in his body. 

 

_Okay then, it’s not a joke. I can handle this, right?_

 

_…Oh, who am I kidding? A literal angel sent from heaven is going to be in the same city within hours and I have had no time to prepare myself._

 

 

\---- 

 

 

“I never want to fly coach again after that!” Phichit had been beaming from ear to ear ever since the two boys had stepped into the plane in Japan. Now, as they exited their last flight and set foot onto Russian soil, Phichit seemed only to long for the business class seats they had just left behind. 

 

_‘Phichit, you’re so dramatic. Although, thinking realistically, if we do anymore travelling it’ll probably be through the orchestra which means those will be the seats we’d be given anyway if Mrs. Baranovskaya has anything to say about it.’_

 

“Well you know she would. That woman could get anyone wrapped around her finger in a heartbeat without even saying a single word. Besides, she-” 

 

Phichit cut himself off with an excited gasp, grabbing Yuuri’s arm and tugging enthusiastically. 

 

“Look, Yuuri! It’s like we’re famous!” Yuuri followed Phichit’s line of sight until he caught a glimpse of a somewhat familiar Russian gentleman standing at baggage claim looking slightly annoyed. In his hands, there was a plain white board that read _Katsuki Yuuri & Phichit Chulanont._

 

_‘Guess that’s our ride.’_

 

 

\---- 

 

 

“What the hell is the matter with you today, old man?” Yuri watched Victor skate slow, distracted circles around the rink from the sidelines, the man not even bothering to fake an actual practice session.

 

“Yuri, I can’t focus when he’s coming here today!” The heart eyes Victor was donning made Yuri gag.

 

“What are you even talking about? Are you still mooning over that Japanese pig that Lilia hired? Seriously, you haven’t stopped talking about him all week and you’ve never even spoken one word to the guy.” 

 

“Ah, Yura, you just don’t understand!” Victor sighed dramatically before he shook himself, spinning back to return to the center of the ice. 

 

“Come on, let’s practice. I’ll give you some pointers on your free skate to distract myself.”

 

 

\---- 

 

 

Yuuri stepped out of the sleek, black limo and inhaled the chilly Russian air. 

 

_‘This place is even more beautiful in person, Phichit!’_

 

Surrounding them were gorgeously structured buildings both old and new, interspersed with trees and flowers and people. Their eyes drank in the sights around them hungrily as they followed their driver, who they’d discovered was the famous figure skating coach Yakov Feltsman, towards a building in the distance. 

 

“Hey, Yuuri? Why do you think Mrs. Baranovskaya asked us to meet her at a skating rink before going to our apartment?” Phichit’s face scrunched up in utter confusion as his gaze shifted from Yuuri to the building before them and back again. Yuuri stifled a giggle.

 

_‘She often works with the competitive skaters here, Phichit. She’s probably quite busy with it and didn’t have time to leave and meet us elsewhere. Besides, I’m not starting practices with her for a few days. This is just her formal greeting to us; we won’t be long.’_

 

Phichit shrugged in acceptance of the explanation, following his friend through the doors.

 

 

\---- 

 

 

“Oi, Victor! It’s your turn to get lunch for everyone!” The silver haired Russian had spent most of his morning pacing across the ice idly with his head stuck in the clouds. Yuri had quickly gotten tired of Victor’s coaching techniques when the older man had offered his help earlier. The younger boy had allowed his frustration to boil over in a sudden tirade of angry ranting before he had skated off to practice on his own. 

 

“But what if I miss him?” Victor whined. Yuri just glared in response. 

 

“Look, I don’t know what you want me to tell you. If you don’t want to miss the Japanese guy, then you better get a move on. It’s only a 10-minute walk to the café anyway so stop freaking out like a love sick puppy.” Yuri practically growled out his response through a clenched jaw.

 

Victor stood rooted to the spot eyes darting between the doors and the blond in front of him as the contemplated the pros and cons of his situation. On the one hand if he left and missed his angel’s arrival, he’d be spending the rest of the day sulking about it. On the other, his rink mates would be extremely annoyed with him if he refused to go get lunch on his assigned day. It only took a single, fiery glare from the blond in front of him to make up his mind; Victor had annoyed the blond enough for one day.

 

“I’ll be back in 5.”

 

 

\---- 

 

 

“Katsuki Yuuri, it’s a pleasure to meet you in person. Welcome to Russia.” Lilia Baranovskaya was even more intimidating and powerful in person. Yuuri swallowed down his mixed rush of fear and delight as he grabbed her outstretched hand in a firm shake. As he pulled away, he was handed a large envelope that contained several information packets about the orchestra’s rehearsals and regulations. 

 

“Please read those by your first session with me in 2 days’ time and sign any of the necessary documents included. I apologize for not being able to spend more than a few minutes with you today, but I trust that you are both weary from your journey and eager to settle in.”

 

_‘Thank you again for this opportunity, Mrs. Baranovskaya. Did my medical files transfer properly?’_ Phichit quickly translated the question for the Russian woman, his voice clear though Yuuri could detect a slight waver as her gaze met his. 

 

“They did. I understood everything clearly and grant permission for all the requested accommodations. I look forward to working with you, Mr. Katsuki.” Lilia nodded at the both of them politely before turning and entering the inner doors leading to the rink. Yuuri and Phichit watched through the small window as a young blond boy skated up to her and listened intently, eyes blazing with passion and determination. 

 

_‘Come on, Phichit. Let’s head to our new home.’_

 

 

\---- 

 

 

Victor Nikiforov is a professional athlete who trains rigorously every day and yet he still approached the rink doors out of breath, arms full of take away bags. He shoved his way through the doors and into the inner rink sighing with relief as he sat upon the bench. He took a look around and didn’t notice anything different.

 

_Maybe I made it back in time after all!_

 

Then his eyes landed upon Lilia, the tall Russian women standing at the side of the rink as Yuri showed her his short program choreography. 

 

“Oh no! I missed him!” Victor groaned, head falling into his hands in a rather theatrical form of frustration.

 

 

Yuri’s laughter could be heard across the rink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I love hearing from you in the comments or on my tumblr!
> 
> お母さん - mom


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I can't believe all the attention this story has so far! Thank you to everyone who has been reading and sharing this story. I also realized that I never mentioned this before, but if you guys want to share this story or create fanart or anything based on this story, that is absolutely okay with me as long as credit is given where it is due! I always love seeing things/making things like that for stories I enjoy, so please feel free! I hope you all enjoy part 3 of Some Things Are Meant To Be!

“Yura, why didn’t you say anything? You could’ve asked him to wait! Mila says I only missed him by a couple of minutes!” Victor had spent the 10 minutes after his return from the lunch run sulking and pouting in the stands of the training rink. 

 

“Victor, I don’t even know the guy. Why on earth would I randomly go up to him and ask him to stand around an ice rink waiting for some person he doesn’t know, idiot?” Yuri rolled his eyes and smacked Victor on the back of the head, enunciating the insult he fired at the older Russian. “He’s got to go get settled in anyway; he has to start dealing with Lilia on a daily basis in 2 days. Anyone would need some recuperation time before something like that.” Victor’s head flew up in sudden interest.

 

“2 days? And how exactly do you know that?”

 

“Are you so old that your memory is starting to fail on you, Vitya? Don’t you remember that Otabek helps the orchestra produce their soundtracks for the public? Lilia obviously wants to show off her new star, so she recruited Beka to start a new production round the other day.” Yuri grimaced at the cheerful grin Victor’s face had quickly morphed into. “Now what? You’re creeping me out, old man…” 

 

“Yura, you are a life saver!”

 

\---- 

 

“Finally done!” Phichit stood from his crouched position in front of the dresser and stretched out his tired muscles. He turned and walked out of his new bedroom, turning down the small hallway towards the far door that stood slightly ajar. “Yuuri? Are you almost done in there? We still need to go to the grocery store and get food for the apartment. We should probably grab dinner too while we’re there since it’s getting pretty late.” Yuuri looked up from where he was carefully polishing his violin. He gently set it down on a stand before getting up from his seated position.

 

_‘I’ve been done for a little while now, actually. Let’s go then!’_

 

\---- 

 

“Yura! You’re still coming over for dinner tonight, right? It’s tradition after all, our Thursday night dinners. We can make your favorite if you want to!” Yuri glared at him, but shrugged and nodded briskly after a brief minute of contemplation. 

 

“Yeah, whatever. I won’t say no to piroshky, but Beka won’t be able to come this week. He’s really busy getting plans sorted and outlined for Lilia since this gig was such short notice. It’s been a couple of late nights.” Yuri’s eyes dulled slightly as he said this and Victor could tell the younger man was worried for his boyfriend’s health. 

 

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I’m sure Otabek will be okay; he knows his limits. If it would make you feel better, why don’t you call him and see if you can convince him to take a quick nap before he starts working tonight? He’ll listen to you of all people.” Yuri looked like he was about to protest, a light flush blooming across his nose, but the boy just grabbed his phone and dialed. Victor knew Otabek had picked up the phone as soon as he saw the bright gleam return to the blonde’s eyes. The two walked towards Victor’s car and began to drive off through the streets of St. Petersburg. Yuri hung up the phone after a few minutes and sat quietly, trying to hide a small smile.

 

“Well, he said he’d try to sleep for a bit and I told him I’d bring him some piroshky for dinner later on-” Yuri’s sentence broke off as they passed the road leading to Victor’s apartment. “Oi, where the heck are we going?” 

 

“The grocery store, of course! We need the ingredients for piroshky. I never said I had any of them, just that we could make them!” 

 

Yuri put his head in his hand and sighed in annoyance.

 

\---- 

 

“I hope we can fit all this food into the apartment! We’re going to be set for quite a while.” Phichit giggled at the sight of Yuuri rolling his eyes.

 

_‘It would’ve been a lot less food if you had stopped throwing random items into the cart as we walked around, Phichit.’_

 

“Yuuri! Those things were essentials! We really need them!”

 

_‘I don’t care how much you try to convince me, Phichit. I will never agree that gummy bears and animal crackers are essential to survival.’_ Despite his exasperated words, Yuuri had a smile on his face and was fondly watching his friend munch on a handful of the aforementioned crackers. The two continued on the short walk back to their apartment.

 

“Yuri!”

 

Yuuri’s head swung around as he heard an unfamiliar voice call out his name. A light sweat was already building on the back of his neck and between his fingers. As he searched for the voice, he caught sight of a silver haired man pouting at a blond who was staring defiantly at his phone, unmoving from his spot in front of the shop’s door. 

 

“Yuri, come on! The quicker we go shopping, the sooner you can go home.” Yuuri forced himself to take deep breaths and calm down as he realized the stranger had not been speaking to him. Phichit patted him softly on the shoulder as they continued their walk. The Thai boy’s hand slipped down to grasp Yuuri’s and squeeze reassuringly.

 

“Let’s go home, Yuuri.” 

 

\---- 

 

Two days later

 

\---- 

 

“Are you excited, Yuuri?” Phichit watched as his friend finished packing his rehearsal bag, the Japanese boy grabbing a file filled with his paperwork at the last minute.

 

_‘Nervous. But I’m really looking forward to playing; you know how that always calms me down.’_

 

“Don’t worry. I’ll be there the whole time. If you need me, you know you only have to ask.”

 

“Thank you, Phichit.” Phichit’s eyes widened slightly as he took in the grateful glint in his friend’s eyes and the happy tone in his quiet voice. The Thai boy just smiled and lead the way out the door. 

 

\---- 

 

_Okay, here goes nothing._

 

Victor entered quietly through the front doors of the St. Petersburg Theatre, glancing from side to side stealthily as he made his way to the doors that lead into the auditorium. The Russian man glanced through the window in the door to find the orchestra in the midst of their practice session. The distance made it impossible to make out any faces, but Victor knew the person he was searching for was there by the sighing violin solo that rang out above the rest of the noise. 

 

_At least I know now that Yuri was right. He’s here! Okay, Victor, be cool. They’re going to go on a break in-_ Victor glanced at his watch _-5 minutes and then you just walk up to him and introduce yourself. What could go wro-?_

 

“What are you doing?” Victor leapt into the air and whirled around at the voice, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head as he realized he’d been caught. The Russian took in the dark skin and petite frame of the boy standing across from him. 

 

“Oh! Um, my friend is part of the orchestra, you see, and I promised to come say hi during their break!” The boy looked doubtful, but accepted Victor’s explanation nonetheless. 

 

“Alright then. My name’s Phichit, by the way.”

 

“Victor. It’s nice to meet you!” 

 

“Likewise. Look, they probably won’t be done for a little while. Madam Baranovskaya introduced a new musician today and said the first half of rehearsal may be longer than planned. You’re welcome to come relax in the little common room they put me in if you’d prefer? It’ll be more comfortable than standing out here.” Victor’s eyebrows shot up in surprise at the kindness of this stranger, Phichit, but accepted the offer anyway.

 

“Lead the way!”

 

\---- 

 

“Beka!”

 

A tall man with dark hair styled in an undercut turned towards the sound of a familiar voice yelling his name. 

 

“Yura, what are you doing here?” Despite the confused question, Otabek leaned down to peck his boyfriend gently on the lips. “Rehearsal won’t be over for another couple of hours, babe. Our break is only for an hour.”

 

“I know, but I sort of missed you and decided I’d bring you some lunch.” Yuri blushed and held out a bag, shoving it at Otabek as he glanced away in embarrassment. The inside revealed a lunch that looked like it had been carefully and precisely prepared. Otabek smiled softly at the sight and kissed Yuri once again, this time with a little more passion. 

 

“Thank you, котенок.” 

 

“Excuse me?” The two boys turned at the new voice. 

 

“Hello. You’re Yuuri right? The new first violin?” At the Japanese boy’s nod, Otabek continued. “Thanks for agreeing to come chat with me for a few minutes. I’m sorry it had to be during your lunch break.” Yuuri’s hands flew as he signed out different words to Phichit, the Thai man translating for Otabek. 

 

“It’s no problem at all. You said you had a couple of questions and you wanted to see my violin?” 

 

“That’s right. Also, I hope you don’t mind that my boyfriend is going to join us. This is Yuri Plisetsky. Yura, this is Katsuki Yuuri, Lilia’s new musician, and Phichit Chulanont, Yuuri’s translator.” Yuri gazed at Yuuri with curiosity sparking his gaze. 

 

“Translator?” Otabek looked awkward for a minute and turned to Yuuri. 

 

“I’m not allowed to tell him because it breaches our contract with you. It’s up to you if you tell him or not.” Otabek turned back to Yuri, but before he could apologize to his lover for not sharing the information, Phichit spoke again, translating the signs flying from Yuuri’s hands. 

 

“Long story, short: I have a condition known as selective mutism which basically means I don’t talk. I use Sign Language instead to communicate. Madam Baranovskaya was kind enough to accept my condition and allow me to bring my friend with me to translate as I work with the orchestra.” Yuri’s eyes darted between Yuuri’s hands and eyes as he took in the information being shared with him before he spoke. 

 

“I appreciate you sharing that with me.” Yuuri just gave the blond a small smile and turned back to Otabek expectantly. 

 

“Well let’s get this done so we can all go eat and relax for a bit.”

 

\---- 

 

“Yuuri, we still have 45 minutes of your break so let’s go sit outside and eat, okay?” Yuuri nodded. 

 

_‘Yuri Plisetsky was nicer than I first imagined he would be. I’ve seen him skate before on television. He was amazing on the ice, but he always seemed like a bit of a brat off it. I’m glad I have a real idea of who he is now.’_

 

“Look at you, making friends already! I’m so proud!” Phichit dramatically faked prideful tears before he burst into a fit of laughter. “You’re right though, Yuuri. Yuri and Otabek were both very nice. They’re cute together too.” The two friends had reached the lobby doors and had taken a mere 3 steps away from them before another voice made itself known. 

 

“It’s you!” Phichit turned in time to watch as someone, who he soon realized was Victor, ran up and wrapped his arms around Yuuri. The silver haired man was babbling on and on about how he had come just to see Yuuri and how much he loved the Japanese man’s music, but all Phichit could comprehend at that moment was Yuuri. 

 

\---- 

 

Yuuri’s body became an earthquake, vibrating with overwhelming anxiety and fear.

 

Yuuri’s mind closed off to anything but the constant ringing in his ears. He could hear their voices playing like a broken record in his head; their words breaking down every defense he had built up over the years. 

 

The world went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to leave it at a bit of a climactic moment! They finally met, but it didn't go as well as Victor (and you all) had hoped. The next chapter will include some resolution from this ending, some more Otayuri scenes for all those who enjoyed the addition of that in this chapter, and perhaps a little more development for our main stars. I also promise that the next chapter will actually include some music (it occurred to me that I haven't actually had a chance to include more selections since chapter 1)! As always you guys, I'm always happy to hear from you either on here or on my tumblr page. See you next time! xx
> 
>  
> 
> TRANSLATIONS: котенок = kitten


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

Soft, dazed brown eyes blinked open finding themselves viewing a white ceiling in a room with dimmed lights. Yuuri took the time to slowly reacquaint his mind and body, slowly moving his body one part at a time from his face down to his toes. As the boy became aware of himself, his eyes searched the room around him. He noticed that he was in a small, unfamiliar sitting room. All it contained was a couple of sofas (one of which he was currently laying on), a coffee table, and some decorative plants. Finally, his gaze landed on the figure beside him on the floor, head slumped over on the couch in slumber. 

“…’Chit…” Yuuri heard his own unfamiliar voice quietly vibrate the air in the room. Immediately, the dark head beside his hip shot upwards and worried eyes met his own. 

“Yuuri! You’re finally awake; I’ve been so worried.” Yuuri tried to give his friend a reassuring smile, but he wasn’t sure that his cheek muscles cooperated with his thoughts. Knowing that his body wasn’t ready to move just yet, Yuuri took a breath and spoke aloud once more. 

“What happened…?” Phichit bit his lip, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.

“Oh, Yuuri. I’m so sorry. I should’ve been more careful. I saw him coming, but I couldn’t get there in time to stop him!” Yuuri’s hand moved unconsciously to grab his friend’s in a calming squeeze. In the palm of Phichit’s hand, Yuuri traced letters spelling out his words in the old but familiar way the two friends used to communicate before Phichit had learned Sign Language.

_D O N T - B E - S O R R Y - N O T - Y O U R - F A U L T_

“Yuuri, is it okay if I hug you now?” Yuuri smiled softly. 

‘Of course, Phichit.’ Yuuri mentally assessed himself as he let his best friend embrace him tightly, however, he found that he couldn’t recall very many details past the point of saying goodbye to Otabek and Yuri as he and Phichit had headed off to grab lunch. 

_‘Phichit, can you explain to me more about what happened? How long have I been out?’_ Phichit took a deep breath to gather himself before speaking. 

“We were getting ready to head out and grab lunch, but then… Well, I had met this guy out in the lobby named Victor who said he was waiting for his friend who is in the orchestra, right? So he comes and hangs with me in this room, but then says he has to go after only like 10 minutes. Anyway, when you and I walked out into the lobby, he was standing over by the doors and as soon as he saw you, he kind of jumped on you and yelled a bunch of stuff about wanting to meet you. That’s when you started to panic. I pushed him off you as soon as I could react, but it was too late. Your body had already started to shut down in defense of itself and you had passed out. I brought you in here and locked the door so no one could come in. You’ve been out for almost 2 hours.” 

_‘Where is here exactly?’_

“We’re still at the theater in one of the musician dressing rooms backstage. Lilia had me staying in here while you guys played so that I was nearby but out of the way. It was the first place that popped into my head where you could be secluded and safe.” Yuuri felt his heart warm at the genuine care his friend had for him. He took a few more deep breaths before lifting himself up onto his elbows and eventually into a sitting position. Phichit reached out and handed him a water bottle from the table behind them. 

“Here, drink something.” Yuuri took several slow gulps of the cool liquid, allowing it soothe his throat which felt rubbed raw from the panic attack he had suffered. 

_‘Can we go home now, Phichit?’_ The Thai boy just smiled, nodded, and got to his feet. 

\---- 

Victor wasn’t quite sure what had just happened, but he did know that he fucked up. When he first spotted Katsuki Yuuri exiting the main doors of the theater, he could barely contain his excitement. 

Well, more like he just couldn’t contain it at all. 

Victor didn’t really _mean_ to tackle the other man and pummel his ears with constant words of praise and admiration, it just sort of happened. What he had meant to do was politely walk up to the man and introduce himself before asking to meet with the man sometime to discuss the musician’s compositions. 

Of course, that’s definitely not what happened. Victor’s body had reacted before his mind could catch up and because of that, he had caused a dangerous reaction. The Russian felt the other man’s body language change drastically before he had even visually noticed any sign of discomfort. But as Victor watched (from the floor where he had been thrown to) Phichit gather Yuuri in his arms and rush off, he could see the rapid rise and fall of the man’s chest, the violent tremors wracking his entire body, and the tears silently streaming down his face. 

_What have I done?_

\---- 

When Otabek stepped out of the bathroom from his shower, the last thing he expected to see was his boyfriend seated on their ragged, old couch surrounded in notepads and books, a laptop resting on his knees and a pair of reading glasses perched on the edge of his nose. The Kazakh man continued to dry his hair silently as he gazed lovingly at the blond’s focused demeanor. 

“You’re going to get wrinkles if you keep making that face, Yura.” The older man smirked as the blond jumped at the sound of his voice. The Russian man quickly slammed the laptop shut and whirled around to glare at him.

“You scared the shit out of me, Beka! Don’t sneak up on me like that!” Otabek chuckled at the flustered expression and soft, rosy blush on Yuri’s face. 

“What are you doing?” Otabek reached out to grab one of the notebooks, but it was violently snatched from his grasp by a slender, pale hand. 

“N-nothing. Just… Go in the kitchen or whatever. I’ll be done in a second.” Yuri quickly started gathering up all the scattered materials around him, but was stopped as Otabek gently grabbed his arm. Yuri looked up, green eyes meeting dark brown. 

“Hey. It’s just me. Come on, tell me what you’re up to. Maybe I can help.” Otabek sat himself down on the corner of the couch and pulled the blond to his side, cuddling him as he began to lay out all the notepads once more. Several of them had writing scrawled across them, but the header on the top one caught his interest the most. 

“‘Notes about selective mutism’? You’re looking into facts about that? Is it because of Yuuri?” The blush on Yuri’s face became more pronounced as the younger man nodded slowly and reopened the laptop. 

“It just… caught my interest. It’s not like that guy is cool or anything, no way. I just got curious that’s all.” Otabek was skeptical, and when he leaned forward and saw one of the tabs open on Yuri’s laptop he grinned.

“Sign Language, huh?”

“Shut up, asshole. Alright fine! So he was a pretty nice guy, what do you want a medal?” Otabek leaned forward and kissed his lover’s forehead sweetly. 

“No, love. Come on, let’s do some research together. Maybe we can surprise Yuuri in a few days and have a conversation with him.” Yuri looked up at his boyfriend in surprise, eyes gleaming happily as he kissed the dark haired man fiercely on the lips. 

“I love you.” 

\---- 

Victor paced across the carpeted floor of his apartment’s living room rapidly, his hand resting across his mouth as he thought hard about what to do. Makkachin lay resting at the man’s feet, tail wagging gently as her head followed the back and forth motion of her owner’s movements. Victor collapsed to his knees in front of his loyal pooch and grabbed the dog’s fluffy face, gazing into soft, brown doggy eyes. 

“Oh, Makka… What on earth am I going to do? I need to apologize to Yuuri, but how the hell am I going to ever get him to even be within a mile of me again, let alone actually speak to him!” Makkachin’s head tipped to the side and she licked Victor’s face in sympathy. 

Suddenly, Victor was struck with an idea. 

“How could I have forgotten!?” He jumped to his feet immediately, Makkachin trotting after him excitedly as he raced into the kitchen. He seized his phone from the counter and frantically typed in his passcode, fumbling a couple of times in his haste before finally entering it correctly. 

“Please, please, please let this work! He’s probably just as angry at me as Yuuri is, but he’s my only chance to make things right without scaring the guy off even more!” Victor clicked the call button and waited in agony as the call rang through. 

_Click._

“Hello?” 

“Please, before you immediately hang up on me, give me a chance to explain.” Victor held his breath as he heard an irritated sigh sound on the other line. 

“I’m listening.” 

“What happened earlier was a complete and utter accident, I swear I didn’t mean for anything bad to happen I just wanted to meet Yuuri. He’s an incredible performer and an amazing person. I saw his audition for the orchestra and his music just spoke to me instantly. I’ve not been this inspired by something in a very long time, and I allowed myself to get too worked up. I really want to work with Yuuri this season. My plan was to get to know him a bit and ask him if he would be willing to record something for me to skate to, but as you know that didn’t exactly happen. I haven’t even met him officially and I already know he’s someone I would be honored to work with. Give me the chance to apologize to him. I know I royally screwed up here, but please help me.” 

\---- 

Phichit pulled the phone away from his ear for a moment and glanced over at the dozing form of his best friend on the couch. The two of them had slowly made their way back to the apartment, Yuuri immediately curling up on the couch to relax after his traumatic day. Phichit had ordered them some take out, but Yuuri hadn’t seemed interested in eating. Eventually, the man had fallen asleep. 

“I’ll give you one chance, Victor. Meet us tomorrow morning at the bakery by the rink before practice. Don’t screw this up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I realized something as I worked on this latest chapter of STAMTB and that is that I apologize too much. Every time I've posted a new chapter for this story, I always begin my notes with "sorry for the late update" or "sorry this took so long" and I know the reasoning for it has a lot to do with my anxiety, but I finally asked myself, why on earth am I apologizing? 
> 
> Basically, what I've come to understand and what I need to share with you is, this story is going to have some long gaps in between updates and there's not much I can do about that. I can't keep constantly worrying about what you guys are thinking when I take a month or so to post a new chapter. I'm a really busy person. I'm a full time student who works 20+ hours a week (more in the summer) and I just often don't have time to bust out a new chapter. I can't be like those writers who post once a week (kudos to them, because writing is time consuming)! 
> 
> I promise that I will update as quickly and as often as I can, but I'm just going to say this right here, right now. If any of you are going to be angry or upset that I'm not posting updates to this story more frequently, then you don't have to read it. I do this for my own enjoyment, at my own pace. That being said, I love providing stories to you all and it makes me so happy that so many of you are enjoying this story. For those of you who are just here, enjoying my writing as it comes, I thank you for being so patient and kind. 
> 
> Alright, I promise I'm done being so serious now! Thank you all so much for being understanding of this and for sticking around this long. As always, I love hearing from you both here in the comments and on my tumblr page. Come chat with me any time. 
> 
> I love you all. xx


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my goodness you guys, it has been so very long since I last updated! Life has been intense and crazy. Last time I updated was all the way back in the summer. After that last post, summer became a chaotic whirlwind of working, packing, and saying goodbye to my family and friends because, believe it or not, I'm actually in a study abroad program through my university right now! Another reason why I haven't updated in several months. Loads of classes, studying, and homework on top of exploring a new country and traveling around has taken up a huge chunk of my time. Luckily for you guys, and me since I love writing, I have finally managed to find a spare bit of time to write the next chapter. I'm hoping that this chapter is sufficient enough for you all since you've been waiting so patiently for it! I'll be honest and say that I haven't really edited it very much so it's pretty raw and uncut, but it's what I had originally planned for this chapter and I hope it does this story justice. I'm not sure when the next update will end up being, but I promise to get it up as soon as I can. Anyway! I'll let you guys get to it. Read on, my friends!

Victor had never been so nervous in his entire life. All the pre-performance jitters and kiss-and-cry nerves from his entire career put together didn’t even come close to the churning anxiety he felt deep within his gut at the thought of seeing Katsuki Yuuri again after what he’d done. 

_**What if he refuses to even talk to me?** _

_But Phichit said he’d make sure I’d at least get to apologize in person._

_**But what if that makes Yuuri even more upset?** _

_Then I’ll force myself to leave him be. I won’t bother him again if he doesn’t want me to. I owe him at least that much._

_**But I don’t want him to leave me behind.** _

_Now, Victor, don’t be silly. I can certainly go on with my life without this boy in it, even if it’ll be sad to not even call him a friend._

Behind Victor’s head, a gentle bell rang out signaling the opening of the bakery door to welcome in a new customer. As Victor’s head swiveled around to gaze at the open entryway, his eyes began to swallow every detail of the two young men standing in front of the counter, focusing in particular on the one with blue rimmed glasses. 

_Oh, who am I kidding?_

 

\-----

 

As Yuuri trudged along beside his best friend through the streets of St. Petersburg, he worked to rub the sleepiness from his eyes and clear the fog from his brain. To his left, the rising sun glowed warmly over the waking city and Yuuri allowed its gentle heat to warm his chilled body beneath the fleece lined jacket he wore. Yuuri wasn’t quite sure why Phichit had decided that waking up at 7 am to go to a bakery would be a wonderful idea, but Yuuri was getting a free breakfast out of it so he didn’t complain too much. The two approached the door to the bakery and were immediately overwhelmed with the heavenly scents of fresh bread and sugary pastries wafting past their noses. 

_‘Should I go grab us a table?’_ Phichit’s eyes were darkened with hesitation, occasionally glancing to a spot behind Yuuri’s head. As Yuuri went to follow his friend’s gaze, he heard Phichit speak. 

“Uh, no. Actually, I’ve arranged to… meet someone here. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, please don’t be angry with me.” Yuuri’s gaze had swept over the entirety of the bakery’s slightly crowded interior, but he saw no one of particular interest to him. 

_‘Why on earth would I be angry with you? I mean sure, it would’ve been good to know we were meeting someone, but I certainly wouldn’t get angry over something like that. Who is it? Someone I know?’_ Phichit’s face was shadowed with confusion for a moment before a sudden realization seemed to blaze into his mind. 

“Oh my god. You never saw his face.” 

_‘Whose face, Phichit? What on earth are you talking about?’_

“Never mind, Yuuri. Come on. There’s someone who really wants to talk with you.” Phichit grabbed the bag of pastries that the two of them had ordered and began walking towards one of the front tables. Yuuri followed until they reached a table where a single young man sat, one with silvery hair and bright blue eyes. 

“Yuuri, I’d like to introduce you to Victor Nikiforov. He’s the one who asked me to bring you here this morning. He has something he wants to talk to you about.” Yuuri’s eyes slowly shifted from his friend’s worried brown gaze to the other man, who had now stood and was looking at Yuuri with an intensely regretful gaze. 

“Hello, Yuuri. I’m Victor. First things first, I have to sincerely apologize to you.” As the man, Victor, said this, Yuuri glanced at Phichit in utter confusion. The look in his friend’s eyes said that Yuuri should just listen patiently like he always does. 

“I’m afraid that I’m the one who caused you to collapse yesterday at the theater. You see, I’m a close friend to Lilia Baranovskaya and she asked me to help her decide on the violinist she should hire for the orchestra. The moment I heard you play, I was entranced. I immediately told her you were the one to choose, for sure.” Yuuri’s eyes widened in shock at the man’s confession, and he heard Phichit jump in for him before he could even begin to sign. 

“So basically, you’re saying you are the one responsible for Yuuri’s acceptance into the orchestra?” Phichit’s face was doused in shock as Victor nodded, scratching his head sheepishly. 

“Well, of course Lilia made the real final decision, but she asked for my thoughts and I freely gave them. I was being truthful too, Yuuri,” Victor turned back to address the Japanese boy. “You’re the most amazing musician I’ve ever heard. The way your music seems to speak and tell a story, it’s indescribable.” Yuuri’s face erupted in a delicate rosy blush as he shook his head, hands waving out in front of him in embarrassment. 

“No, wait, please. I’ve gotten off track, this is supposed to be an apology. Yuuri, I’m not quite sure what I can even say to apologize for what I did. I truly didn’t mean to attack you like that and I certainly didn’t mean to cause… whatever happened to happen.” As Victor spoke, a look of hesitant confusion came over his face. Victor wasn’t quite sure what exactly had happened as a result of his sudden hug. He just seemed to know it wasn’t good. 

“Anyway, if there’s something more I can do to make it up to you, please let me know. But I guess, for now, just know that I am really, really sorry. I got so excited when I saw you, I couldn’t help myself. I’m kind of known for being a bit overdramatic or ‘extra’ as my friends so kindly like to refer to me as.” Victor gave Yuuri a tentative grin that was slightly awkward, but endearing so Yuuri smiled back, just a little. Then he turned to Phichit and began to sign.

 

\---- 

 

_Deep breaths, Nikiforov. The hard part’s over now. You just need to wait and see what he says. No being disappointed if he’s upset or mad, you brought this upon yourself with your impulsiveness._

Victor ended his apologies with as much of a smile as he possibly could, given his current state of nervousness. His tense muscles relaxed slightly as he saw Yuuri give a hint of smile, but soon his features were taken over by pure confusion as he watched Yuuri’s hands begin to fly in a series of motions aimed towards Phichit. 

_What’s going on…?_

“Yuuri says that he appreciates you apologizing so sincerely. He actually didn’t even know it was you who had grabbed onto him. You see, what happened was you jumping on him like that triggered a pretty severe panic attack that almost immediately caused him to pass out. He’s okay now though and he, being the very kind person he is,” Yuuri glared at his friend at that little add in, “accepts your apology.” Victor shook off the confusion for a moment, looking to Yuuri in utter astonishment. 

“Do… Do you really mean that? You aren’t angry with me? I would totally understand if you were. I was awful to have caused something so traumatic for you and your health!” Yuuri shook his head, a soft smile on his face and once more motioned towards Phichit with his hands. 

“He said that he would like to start over, if that’s okay with you? Put what happened behind you and pretend like you’re meeting for the first time. He can see that you’re truly sorry for what happened and he thinks you seem like a good person.” Phichit looked slightly miffed by Yuuri’s decision, but seemed to accept the choice nonetheless. Victor grinned, his lips pulling up into a friendly, heart shape. 

“I would really like that.” Victor then hesitated again before asking, “I hope you don’t think I’m being too forward, since we just wiped the slate clean between us, but I’m a little confused. How come Phichit is talking for you?” Yuuri’s eyes darkened slightly and Victor winced. 

“I’m sorry, you really don’t have to answer that. I shouldn’t hav-” Victor’s sentence cut off as Yuuri held up a polite hand. He then nodded at Phichit. 

“Alright, long story short, Yuuri is mute. He doesn’t speak. So I’m here to be his translator. He communicates through Sign Language.” Victor’s eyes widened slightly in understanding and a bit of shock. 

“I see. I appreciate you sharing that with me. It’s really nice to finally meet you properly, Yuuri.” Victor held out a slim, pale hand and watched in delight as Yuuri reached out in return, grasping Victor’s palm with his own tanned, calloused one. 

“Say, Yuuri… Now that we’ve gotten off to a better start, you know on the right foot and all, I’d like to ask you something that I had meant to ask you back when I was waiting for you at the theater.” Yuuri’s gaze was questioning, but he nodded his head in affirmation for Victor to continue. 

“You see, I’m actually a professional figure skater. My competition season is coming up in a few months and I need to start working on putting my choreography together with music.” A spark of understanding seemed to light within Yuuri’s eyes, but it was clouded by a haze of disbelief, as if Yuuri couldn’t imagine that Victor was really about to ask _him_ the question that was on the tip of his tongue. 

 

“I’d like to commission you to create the music for my competition routines this year. Would you be willing?”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm back from my study abroad! Sorry it's been so long since the last update. Something I've noticed when it's come to writing this story is that I'll have random outbursts of inspiration to write it that can last for a while where I can bang out a full chapter in just a few hours or it could be enough to just write a paragraph and then get stuck again. But the next installment of our adventure is finally here and I hope to get the next one out sooner than the last few updates have been. I am starting back to school next week, so that may make it a bit difficult, but I'll try my best for you guys. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story so far. I hope this chapter pleases you!

Yuuri’s eyes blinked in shock as Victor’s words registered in his brain. He turned his head to meet Phichit’s equally confused gaze, though the Thai boy’s eyes also had a glint of excitement hidden within them. 

_‘You can’t be serious…’_ Phichit snorted. 

“Yuuri, I can’t believe you still doubt your talent even though it got you into the most prestigious symphony in the world.” Victor was shifting a nervous gaze back and forth between the two as they conversed.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but what did he say?” Victor’s face flushed slightly in embarrassment, chastising himself for not knowing Sign Language. 

“Sorry. He can’t exactly fathom why you would want him of all people to compose a piece for your skating.” Victor’s eyes widened, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. 

“Well, of course I’d want him to.” Victor turned to Yuuri. “You’re extremely talented, Yuuri. Honestly, I can’t really come up with the words to describe how much your music moves me. It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to skate with my full heart and with how your music makes me react, I feel like it may be time to skate like my old self again.” Yuuri bit his lip, still uncertain about the whole thing. 

_‘I just worry that my music won’t be enough to fully impress people during a competition. This is your livelihood we’re dealing with. I don’t want to be the one responsible for messing up your season because everyone hates the music…’_ Phichit translated for Victor who immediately jumped in, eyes blazing with determination and hope. 

“Please, Yuuri. I promise that with your music and my skating combined, we could create something incredible, something that will move people more than anything that’s ever been done before. I trust you completely and I hope that you can learn to trust me enough to do your music justice. It is your voice after all.” The last words out of Victor’s mouth was no more than a whisper, but Yuuri heard them the loudest. He felt his heart jump. He hadn’t even known this man for more than an hour and yet, the Russian had already discovered the deepest level of Yuuri’s sound, the reason why his music represented the full encompassment of his being. Yuuri took a deep breath, steeling himself, and met Victor’s gaze. 

He nodded. 

 

\---- 

 

Later that afternoon, after Yuuri’s rehearsal with the symphony, he and Phichit approached Miss Baranovskaya to ask for access to a private practice room after rehearsal every day. 

“That can be arranged, Mr. Katsuki. Room 3 is available until 4 pm every day, so feel free to use the space until that time.” The two thanked her and soon, they were heading to the room, Yuuri’s violin in tow. The first two hours were spent with Phichit and Yuuri tossing ideas back and forth, going through Yuuri’s repertoire of pieces and compiling a list of potential ideas for both Victor’s short program and his free skate. The only restrictions the skater had given them was that the pieces should be emotional and ones that Yuuri felt proud of. In the end, the list for each program was 3-4 songs long and Yuuri felt satisfied with their choices. As he sat back in his seat, releasing a sigh of relief, he noticed a thinner, sleeker version of a violin resting in the corner. His eyes lit up in excitement and he immediately rose to grab the instrument. 

“Yuuri, is that…?” Yuuri didn’t wait for Phichit to finish before he nodded excitedly and began to play a few notes. Suddenly, Yuuri seemed struck by inspiration and began to play a vibrant and slightly dark tune. Phichit listened silently, slightly in awe, and it seems the Thai boy wasn’t the only one intrigued by the intoxicating melody pouring from the electric violin in Yuuri’s hands. 

 

\---- 

 

Otabek’s day had been more insane than usual and the young man was just about at his wits end, an unusual state to find Otabek Altin of all people in. He sulked as he wandered down the hallway towards the practice rooms, aiming to clean them up before he would be able to pick up Yuri from the rink and they could head home for a quiet night in. All thoughts of cleaning flew out of his head, however, as an upbeat, haunting stream of notes lilted out of the crack below the door of practice room 3. He didn’t know that any of the rooms were currently occupied, but he couldn’t really care less at that point, captivated by the song. He immediately scrambled to get his phone out of his pocket, recording the music on his phone. He couldn’t help but be reminded of someone in particular when he heard it. 

Eventually, the notes came to a close and Otabek heard claps and shouts of amazement from within the room. After a few minutes and some clattering noises, the door swung open and Otabek was met with the sight of Yuuri Katsuki. 

“Oh, hello Otabek!” Phichit greeted him cheerfully and Yuuri waved, signing something to Phichit. 

_‘It’s nice to see you again Otabek. How have you and Yuri been?’_

“Yuuri wants to-” Phichit began to speak, translating for Yuuri, but was cut off as Otabek held up a hand, a hesitant look crossing his face before he slowly began to sign a response. 

_‘I understand you… a little. Yuri and I have been… learning… slowly.’_ A delighted look came over Yuuri’s face and, in his excitement, he began to sign too fast for Otabek to comprehend. Phichit laughed as Otabek’s face grew confused. 

“Yuuri, you gotta slow down man, he’s got no idea what you’ve been saying.” Yuuri blushed and nodded. 

_‘Sorry, Otabek. I just got so excited. Not many people take the time to learn for me. Thank you.’_ Yuuri signed, this time being sure to slow his hands enough for the other man to catch. 

_‘Don’t thank me, thank Yuri.’_ Yuuri nodded. 

_‘I’ll be sure to next time I see him.’_ Otabek smiled. 

_‘He’ll like that.’_

 

\---- 

 

The following day, Yuuri had agreed to meet with Victor at the rink with the music ready for Victor to test out with his program components. Victor eagerly waited at the door, skates on and guarded, body warmed up and ready to skate, breath fogging up the glass on the front doors. Through the open doors of the inner rink, Victor could hear Yakov shout to him. 

“Vitya! Get on the ice right now or so God help you I will come drag you over here myself. The boy will be here when he gets here.” Victor’s body shuddered in anticipation at seeing Yuuri again and getting to hear his beautiful music beyond the brief audition piece he had heard just a few weeks ago. 

“Vitya!” Victor sighed, turning away from the doors. 

“I’m coming…” 

 

\---- 

 

Yuuri didn’t often go into skating rinks, but even he noticed the higher quality of this particular rink in comparison to those he’d be in before. Phichit let out a low, impressed whistle. 

“Dang, this place is huge. I guess it makes sense though; Russia has a lot of really talented skaters. They probably go all out when building these places here.” Yuuri just nodded, head shifting in all direction as he took in all the sights around him. A sudden shout shook him out of his musings. 

“You’re here!” Yuuri looked down and saw a silver haired blur skating quickly from the opposite side of the ice to the barrier before him and Phichit. Taking an instinctive step back, Yuuri was suddenly met with the excited blue gaze of Victor. 

“I’m so excited to start! I hope you are too, Yuuri?” Yuuri felt a little laugh bubble out of him and he nodded, handing the Russian a disc. 

“Yuuri and I loaded 7 songs onto that disc for you to practice with and choose from. The first 3 were ones we thought may be good for your short program and the last 4 for the free skate.” Phichit explained and Victor did a quick spin on the ice in joy before skating over to where Yakov stood coaching Mila, handing his coach the disc. The older man could be seen shaking his head in annoyance at something Victor had said or done, but, nevertheless, he turned and approached the wall where a panel stood, holding the controls to a stereo system. Yuuri and Phichit watched as Victor skated to the center of the ice and took his starting position for the short program. 

Victor worked through the first two songs, giving each of them a different reaction as the program came to a close before asking for the next one to be played. As the third song began, Yuuri noticed a blond head glowering in the corner of the rink, eyes fixated on Victor’s movements. Eventually, Yuri turned his head slightly and met Yuuri’s gaze, prompting the Japanese boy to wave in a friendly manner. Yuri stalked over to where Yuuri and Phichit stood, nodding in greeting. 

_‘Hi Yuri. I was hoping to see you at some point today. I saw Otabek yesterday and he told me about you trying to learn Sign Language. I wanted to thank you for that. Not many people bother.’_ Yuuri made sure to sign slowly to ensure the other boy got every word. A blush flared across the blonde’s face, but the boy made no attempts to respond back, eyes flashing around the rink in what seemed to Yuuri like embarrassment. Phichit seemed to notice this as well and spoke.

“You know, you’re pretty cool for knowing Sign Language. Not even Victor has bothered yet and he’s the one working with Yuuri.” The two boys watched in amusement as the Russian’s chest puffed up a little and he suddenly became more interested in signing, making his hands clearly visible not only to Yuuri, but to anyone who may be watching. 

_‘It was no big deal, I guess. I just thought it would be cool to hang out sometime even if Phichit can’t be there or whatever.’_ The blush was still ever present on the blonde’s cheeks, but he seemed confident in his words and his signing was even further along than Otabek’s had been. Yuuri was certainly impressed and when he told Yuri so, the boy turned his face the other way, quietly muttering something under his breath. Yuri’s face turned his way once more and Yuuri was met with a dazzling smile that seemed to suit the boy much more than his ever present scowl. 

_‘Thanks.’_

 

\---- 

 

Victor had skated through all the pieces and seemed to be having trouble picking. 

“They’re all just amazing, Yuuri! I feel bad just picking two of them…” Yuuri shook his head. 

_‘Pick the ones that you feel best skating to. It makes no difference to me which ones you pick considering they’re still all mine.’_ Phichit translated, but Victor still seemed uncertain, mind laden with thoughts. A shout sounded from the door and the three turned to see Yuri, bag in hand, beside Otabek. 

“Victor, you’re an idiot. It’s obvious that you should pick the second one for the short and the fifth one for the long. Just decide and get to work so I don’t feel bad about kicking your ass at the Grand Prix Final.” With that said, Yuri turned and stormed out, Otabek following behind, shoulders shuddering with silent laughter. Victor blinked a few times and then seemed to mull Yuri’s suggestions over before nodding. 

“I’ve decided!” He bent over the barrier and wrote down the song titles beside each set of choreography notes. 

 

\---- 

 

Yuri stood by the stove, stirring a pot of hearty soup, the air around him smelling of spices and tomato. Otabek walked up behind him, wrapping his arms around the slim waist of his boyfriend. 

“Smells great, Yura. I’ll set the table so we can eat.” Yuri smiled softly, turning to kiss Otabek’s cheek before the older boy turned away. 

“Thanks, Beka. It should be ready in about 5 minutes.” The blond continued to stir while Otabek set out two bowls and spoons, seating himself at the table once he had done so. He pulled out his phone and remembered suddenly the recording he had taken earlier that day. With a sly glance at Yuri, he clicked his phone’s volume up before pressing play, letting the melody wash over the silence in the room. He saw Yuri’s back stiffen slightly, head tilting to listen. Suddenly, the blond whirled around and rushed over to Otabek, eyes wide with amazement. 

“What is this, Beka? It’s so cool!” Otabek shrugged, grinning internally as his inclination from earlier had been correct. 

“Someone was playing it earlier in one of the practice rooms. It actually reminded me a lot of you, so I thought I’d record a bit of it.” Otabek rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Yuri grabbed his boyfriends phone, turning the volume up all the way and restarting the recording when it ended the first time. Soup forgotten, Yuri began to pace in eagerness, phone speaker next to his ear. 

“I want to skate to this. Who was playing, Beka? Please tell me you know.” Yuri sounded so desperate that it almost made Otabek concerned, but the older boy just smiled slightly. 

“It was Yuuri.”

 

\---- 

 

Yuuri was at the table eating a light dinner with Phichit when his phone suddenly began to buzz several times in a row. His eyes widened, fork halfway to his mouth, thinking that someone was calling him for some odd reason. When he grabbed the phone, he realized that it was not a phone call after all, but rather a series of texts in all caps from Yuri demanding to see him immediately. Stunned, Yuuri typed back and told Yuri that he was welcome to stop by the apartment.

To Yuri  
Is everything okay?

From Yuri  
Yeah. I’ll be there in 10.

Bewildered, Yuuri conveyed the situation to Phichit who laughed at Yuri’s impulsiveness, though his eyes also betrayed his confusion. 

Minutes later, a loud knocking sounded on the door and, without waiting for the door to be opened, Yuri found the knob to be unlocked and pushed his way in. 

“Yura, you can’t just walk into someone’s home. You need to be patient.” Beka chastised by boyfriend, but the blond was on a mission and didn’t seem to register the fact that anyone was talking to him. His gaze focused in on Yuuri who was taken aback by the hope and fierce excitement in those green eyes. 

“Yuuri, I’m sorry for not using Sign Language right now, but I don’t really know all the words to say what I need to say.” Yuuri just nodded and told Yuri it was fine, asking the boy what he needed. 

“What was the song you were playing earlier today, in the practice room?” Yuuri tilted his head in confusion.

_‘How do you know about that?’_ Otabek shyly raised his hand. 

“Erm, that’s my doing. I’m sorry if this was uncalled for, but I heard you playing and the song reminded me a lot of Yura so I kind of recorded it. I can delete it if you’d like me to.” Yuuri shook his head. 

_‘It’s fine. What about the song, Yuri? It’s just something I’ve been playing around with for a while, but I didn’t have the right instrument to record it.’_

“Please, Yuuri, let me skate to that song! It’s brilliant and it fits exactly what I’ve been looking for in my free skate. It’s way better than that crap song Yakov has me skating right now. Please!” Yuuri shook his head in disbelief at the thought that not one, but two professional, competitive skaters wanted his music, but just one look at Yuri’s face let him know just how serious the young boy was. 

Without another moment’s hesitation, Yuuri agreed, causing a blond blur of triumph to fly into the air with a whoop. 

Otabek couldn’t really seem to comprehend the complete change in his boyfriend’s demeanor if the look on his face had anything to say about this whole situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until the next update to find out the 3 mysterious skate songs that have captured the attention of our favorite boys! I hope you guys enjoyed chapter 6 of Some Things Are Meant To Be. Let me know in the comments below or on my tumblr what you guys think or if maybe there's any guesses people have about the songs or maybe what's coming up next! See you guys again soon! xx


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